“It is not the on-time performance that they should expect and that they have been used to in the past. But number two, I can’t make the on-time performance be the most critical, I have to, one, say that the safety is number one,” Giulietti said Monday.

Giulietti said he’ll leave comments about the railroad’s past safety posture to federal agencies like the NTSB.

“This step is in the right direction. The real question is whether this new position will be a figurehead or a real change agent. What’s needed is for this position – safety officer – to have real power to change the culture as well as procedures and policies top to bottom so that there is a new priority to both safety and reliability,” Blumenthal told WCBS 880 on Monday.

“Why it wasn’t done months or years ago, riders have a right to question. But now is the time for these very specific results and, longer term, improving the track and other equipment,” said Blumenthal.